Articles by Martin Lowe

About Martin Lowe

Martin Lowe is a freelance football writer who has been covering Asian football for the best part of the last decade. He appeared on Al Jazeera English television and Football Nation Radio during the 2019 AFC Asian Cup, whilst writing for Sandals for Goalposts and other Asian football focused platforms. He has been a senior contributor to The Asian Game website since our launch in 2019.

The remarkable rise of Abdukodir Khusanov

January 21, 2025 Martin Lowe

On Monday evening, Abdukodir Khusanov made history, in becoming the first Uzbek player to sign for a Premier League club, following his big money move to champions Manchester City. His transfer marks a truly remarkable […]

Kapadze’s young wolves ready to shine on world stage

July 24, 2024 Martin Lowe

Wednesday marks a historic point for Uzbek football, as the national team kick-off in their very first appearance at the Olympic Games. While for many, Olympic football is deemed a secondary competition, an afterthought perhaps, […]

World Cup hopes go on the line in defining week of Asian Qualifiers

June 5, 2024 Martin Lowe

FIFA World Cup qualification in Asia hits another pivotal juncture this coming week as the final two matchdays of the Second Round play out. With a broadly predictable run of results so far, only a […]

Planning for the future: Uzbekistan reap the rewards of youth focus

April 28, 2024 Martin Lowe

Professional, composed, effective. Some of the superlatives used to describe an unerringly comprised, potentially historic victory for Uzbekistan as they moved one step closer to an Olympics debut; one step closer to breaking their eternal […]

Abdysh-Ata brewing an upset in historic AFC Cup campaign

April 16, 2024 Martin Lowe

History will be made on Wednesday when Abdysh-Ata become the first club from Kyrgyzstan to make it to the latter stages of the AFC Cup, as they host Australia’s Central Coast Mariners in the final […]

Asia’s ‘next-gen’ ready to shine in familiar surrounds

April 14, 2024 Martin Lowe

The race to Paris is on! The biennial U23 AFC Asian Cup kicks off in Qatar this coming week, with Olympic qualification the ultimate prize for the victorious few. Two months on from Qatar’s home […]

Asia reconvenes after Asian Cup as Road to 2026 continues

March 21, 2024 Martin Lowe

A mere six weeks on from the AFC Asian Cup final in Lusail, international football returns as the early rounds of World Cup qualification start to ramp up in Asia. The blur of Qatar – […]

Rivals eye Pakhtakor’s crown as Uzbek Super League kicks off

March 1, 2024 Martin Lowe

The 2024 Uzbek Super League season is set to get underway this weekend, with a contrasting mix of financial prudence and a thriving youth talent pool, that raises the very real prospect of the most […]

Asian Cup a reminder of all that is good in Asian football

February 11, 2024 Martin Lowe

Four weeks of twists and turns, comebacks and shocks, the AFC Asian Cup 2023 may have been delayed seven months longer than we all had expected, but it eventually proved to be well worth the […]

Uzbekistan the masters of their own demise

February 4, 2024 Martin Lowe

Asian football’s biggest nearly men lived up to their own infamous billing on Saturday evening, as hosts and reigning champions Qatar edged past Uzbekistan to set up an AFC Asian Cup semi-final with Iran. A […]